Save and Continue
by Kristanci
Summary: Sequel to New Game. A new outbreak has occured in China and while Claire tries to stop it she realizes she may be the cause. Before she realizes what's happened, she is under Wesker's spell once more and they both must find answers to their "connection".
1. Chapter 1

Madison Chen, freelance journalist extraordinaire, ducked suddenly when she heard a second wave of panic. The terrified screams of the villagers of Dacitan, China rang in her ears. "What's going on?" she asked her camera crew. "No idea, Ms. Chen," Andy, her editor, answered. His expression turned grim when he looked past her. Madison's heart began racing when she saw the panic beginning to rise as villager after villager stared in a distance for a moment, then backed away in fear. Madison walked up to a woman, placing her hand on her shoulder. '_What is it?'_ she asked in Chinese.

The woman threw her hands up to her face, cupping her mouth in horror. "Jow! Jow!" she screamed, grabbing her child and running.

Madison jumped back in surprise. "Wait!" she called after the woman. Then she heard more screaming, but this time there were more voices that rang out. When she looked out again, she saw them. One of them was bent over a man's corpse, like a tiger hovering over its prey. "What the… what the hell!" Madison stammered. It raised its head when it heard her voice, mouth full of flesh from the man's torso. She took a step back, attempting not to make a sudden move.

There was definitely something wrong with this man. Why was he eating the flesh of another? Was this even a man? Was there some type of sickness that was spreading? If she survived this… outbreak, she was sure that nightmares would be visiting her every day for the rest of her life. "Cho!" she screamed at her cameraman. "Are you getting this?" The massacre happening around her was unlike anything she had ever seen. Men… grown men… _dead_ men were attacking the villagers and the field workers. What was supposed to be an educational story on the status of poverty in the village of Dacitan turned into a chaotic situation that could potentially end her life.

"It's not working, Ms Chen!" Cho shouted back, slamming his hand on the news camera. He struggled with the microphone and wires, completely oblivious to the predators coming his way.

"Cho! Watch out!" Madison cried out. She was frozen with fear, unable to feel her legs and force them to move. All she could do is watch as her cameraman and the rest of her team was overcome by the skinless monsters that tore at clothes then at skin. Cho reached out for help, but soon his limb was ripped from his body.

"My God…" Madison gasped. Everywhere she looked, she saw red. Nothing could repel the undead attackers. More of them were coming into view. They came in as a swarm and literally devoured everyone in their way. What could have caused something this terrifying to happen? _Why_ was this happening? Men, women, and children were running in all directions, fleeing the flesh eaters. It didn't matter how fast the villagers were, these demons were faster.

'_They're so fast,' _Madison thought. It was the last rational thought she had before she heard the moans of a flesh eater behind her. She turned to see a decomposing body lurching toward her. Long nails tore at her arms, and soon she was face to face with the flesh eater. Its jaw was broken and hanging by thin layers of skin, and it had no eyes. Madison stared into the black holes just above her murderer's nose. "Dear God, save me," she managed to stutter before the soulless face launched forward and bit down on her neck.


	2. The Never Ending Road

The annoying ring of Leon's 6am alarm caused him to jolt awake and nearly fall out of the bed when he attempted to find his watch to silence it. "Dear God…" he groaned, crawling back into bed. He had only gone to sleep three hours ago due to a change in plans based on information they received two days ago. Chris and Jill went back to the US, and Billy and Rebecca took a trip to the Great Wall to see if they could find any leads on the increasing murders that seemed to be linked to Umbrella copycats.

He felt a small kiss on his forehead. Claire rolled over, and stood making her way to the bathroom. "How you feeling?" she asked. "You've been waking up like you've just gone through a nightmare for the last week." He heard her turn on the sink.

"Better," Leon answered, and it was the God to honest truth. Since Claire's abduction, transformation, and rescue, his sleeping habit had become a bit of an unpredictable roller coaster ride. The last few nights, he and Claire had been sharing a bed. He never asked anything of her, and vice versa. He was just comfortable lying next to her, feeling the warmth and weight of her body. He had a stronger bond with her now than he ever did back in Raccoon City. "I've been sleeping better with you next to me."

Claire poked her head into the bedroom with a blue toothbrush sticking out of her mouth. "Ditto," she winked at him and returned to the sink.

Even with her mouth full of toothpaste and her unruly bed hair, Claire Redfield was the most beautiful girl he knew. It was like seeing the duckling become a swan. Raccoon City still haunted him, and seeing the death of a potential interest in his life was traumatic. He often thought of Ada, wondering how he could have saved her life and he sometimes blamed himself for her death. If he was the same man back then as he was now… would Ada still be alive?

It was the worst feeling to have someone he cared for die in his arms. He could recount every detail. When Claire was taken by Albert Wesker, he had constant nightmares that he would find her, but it would be too late. He dreamt of brushing the hair from her lifeless face, begging for her to respond to him, but she was gone. Her rigid body held no heartbeat, no warmth. It broke his heart, and when he finally cried out in agony, he awoke. He lost Ada years ago, so he swore to himself that he would not lose Claire. His death would have to occur first.

"Watcha thinkin' about?" he heard Claire asked him. He blinked away his daydream, realizing that she was now sitting on the bed next to him. She had combed her hair and pulled it back into a ponytail again.

Leon never opened up to Chris and the others, but he found an outlet in Claire. "I want this to be over," he admitted. There was just no end to the corruption of the human soul. How many others out there were exactly like Spencer, Birkin, and Wesker?

"Well, that's certainly a different line than saying, 'I'll call you,'" Claire joked.

Leon snapped his head up and shook his head, instinctively grabbing her hand. "No, I mean…"

Claire brushed her fingers on his knuckles. "I know what you meant," she said in a softer voice. " I've wished for that every single day since Raccoon City. It amazes me that so many people can go back to the way they were living even after knowing what Umbrella did. Sometimes, I wonder if what we're doing has any affect on the big picture." Her eyes were sad, and her shoulders drooped. "I've seen the other side. If I was ambitious, and I wanted nothing but power and wealth, I wouldn't have returned to you and Chris." She let out a sigh and closed her eyes. "Can you imagine another Wesker infected with the perfect virus?" She bit her lip.

"Hey…" Leon said in encouragement. "Any normal person would have gone crazy with all the stuff we had to deal with if they were alone. I'm just glad that you're here. You have no idea how grateful I am." He was glad to see her smile. It was something he did not see often on her face.

"Get dressed," she said, running her hands through his hair. "We have work to do."

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Billy spoke into the near invisible mic hidden behind the lapel of his shirt while his back was turned to the guard. "Hurry up, princess," he whispered. He heard static for a few seconds before Rebecca's voice filled his ears.

"Almost done," she said hurriedly. He could heard her scraping against the stone of the wall.

Rebecca was trying to act as inconspicuous as possible to grab some samples from the mysterious excavation points along the Great Wall of China. Chris was paranoid enough about another viral attack that he made Rebecca stay behind to double and triple check all possible scenarios that Umbrella copycats could use to produce a new line of BOWs. His final orders to her were to check the excavation points along the Wall to see if she could piece together the reasons why someone would steal the bones of the workers who built the Wall.

Of course, Billy was given the role of "designated diversion" and he had to do his best to act like a lost tourist. He turned again and pointed to the map in his hand. "Sir," he said loudly that he deemed necessary. The Chinese guard flinched slightly but held his ground. "Can you tell me where this restaurant is?" Billy asked in a strong tone. He pointed to a group of Chinese letters and looked as confused as possible.

"West, west," the guard said, pointing over Billy's shoulder. "Must go west, sir."

Billy quickly turned him away to draw his attention away from Rebecca. "Are you- are you sure it isn't that way?" he asked, pointing east. "I could have sworn someone told me the opposite direction," he said with a fake smile "Move, sister," he muttered into his shirt.

"I'm done!" said Rebecca said.

Seconds later, he felt an arm entwine with his and pulled him aside. "Oh silly, I know where that is!" Rebecca said in a cheery tone. "Thank you, sir, for your help," she waved off the guard. He gave her a reluctant nod then returned to his patrol. As soon as the guard was gone, her bright smile vanished.

"What did you find?" Billy asked, not minding that her arm was still wrapped around his.

Rebecca pulled out a small clear bag, revealing that she had extracted a few bone fragments. "Not much, but I pulled these to see if I can find anything that could remotely be related to the T-virus. Though it's interesting…" she trailed off.

"Nothing creepy about you disturbing the dead at all," Billy said.

"It's not like I enjoyed it," Rebecca said frowning. "I promise when we figure this out, I'm returning the bones. I don't like messing with stuff like this." She tucked the bag back into her jacket pocket. "Usually, when I see cases where the remains of the human body are to be studied, the entire specimen it used. But it was obvious that whoever took these bones, only took small fragments just as I did."

Billy's lips pressed together. "So best case scenario, some crazy tourist just wanted some souvenirs. Worst case scenario…"

"Someone's stealing bones for DNA testing. If I can find some significant factor from these samples, I'd say we have a possible Umbrella-like case on our hands," Rebecca finished, her expression equally grim.


	3. Square One

Claire sighed as she pinned up another article on the wall of the living room she was sharing with Leon, Billy and Rebecca. They were renting a small home for the time being, laying low and gathering as much information on the murders happening around the poorer villages of China. "A girl was found dead, torn apart," Claire said sadly. She touched the picture that was featured in the article. Most of the body was covered by grass and dirt. "They said it was due to an animal attack of some kind… but I know better." Past experiences blended the line between human and monster.

Leon nodded and rubbed his tired eyes. "Either they're covering up something or they truly don't care. To be honest, I think it's the latter. Some of these attacks are on villagers that come from the poorest villages in this area. No one would care if its inhabitants were to disappear. My guess is no one checked to see if the girl's family was notified."

Claire hugged herself imagining if Chris was lying somewhere in a ditch and the people that found him didn't care to tell her. "So many people…" she whispered looking at the numerous articles, photos, and confidential files that littered the wall. Thanks to a few friends that were stationed in Beijing, she and Leon were able to gain access to an archive of files that focused on unsolved murders or cases that involved missing persons. Due to the overwhelming population of the country, many of these cases were hardly looked into. The percentage of ever finding these people was zero to impossible.

Two weeks had gone by, and the only thing they had been able to piece together was the typical pattern that originally started back at the Spencer mansion. People would go missing, there'd be no explanation, and then more mysterious murders would pop up with each body appearing more gruesome than the last. Rumors were spreading that a sickness had fallen upon the villages that were unable to provide medical help for their inhabitants. Another set of rumors was based on the recent stream of graves being robbed and pillaged. Citizens figured that the decomposed bodies found in the more rural parts of China were the bodies of the disturbed graves.

"Sixteen bodies, thirty-two "misplaced" corpses," Claire scoffed. "I wonder how long this really has been going on." She felt her cell phone vibrate in her back pocket. REBECCA flashed across the screen multiple times. "Find anything?" she answered.

"I might have," the young woman said. "Billy's on his way back, but I'm going to stay behind and do a little more …research."

Claire knew that tone. Now that Rebecca was growing into her own person, she realized that the young medic had developed an adventurous streak in her personality. "Becca…" she groaned. There was a pause.

"Okay, by research I mean borrowing some records from a medical facility that has suddenly shown an interest in the recent homicides."

Claire waited for Rebecca to finish. "And?" She heard Rebecca sigh.

"And by borrow, I meant steal…"

A laugh managed to escape from Claire's lips. "So let me guess. You didn't tell Billy, and you're actually at the facility right now?"

"Yup, gotta go, bye!" Rebecca quickly said before hanging up. Claire looked at her cell phone seeing "call disconnected" on the screen. After a few seconds, the wallpaper popped up. It was her, Rebecca, and Jill making silly faces, sticking their tongues out and crossing their eyes. No matter how many times she saw that picture, she laughed, enjoying the happy memory. It was something that brightened her day.

There was no denying that she had become closer and closer to Jill and Rebecca since Wesker's death. It was an unspoken agreement and understanding that Jill and Rebecca had with Claire. Though they could not fully comprehend the heartbreak she felt when she saw Wesker die in Nevada, they understood that their friend needed nothing but support. They never questioned her or asked exactly what happened between her and Wesker. They just knew that an interrogation isn't what she needed.

"What's Rebecca up to?" Leon asked.

"She's going rogue for a bit," Claire said, immediately throwing her hands up to stop Leon from speaking. "And don't go all defensive on me. She can take care of this by herself. The last thing she needs is to be babied because she's the youngest member here. She's fully capable of handling things on her own."

Leon shut his mouth and sat back further into the couch, looking defeated. "I really can't say no to you," he said. "What do you think she'll find? I can't stand just waiting around for answers."

She patted him on the knee and sat next to him. Both of them were looking at the paper covered wall. If they had a picture for every person that feel victim to Umbrella and like companies, they could probably fill a mansion. "We'll get them, Leon. Then those poor souls can rest."

He didn't answer her. He just held her hand, giving the dead the silent respect they deserved.

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Rebecca slid the security card through the verification lock, silently apologizing to the security guard she had knocked out seconds before. There was just something odd about all the pieces to this puzzle. There was enough evidence to cause concern for another viral outbreak, but there were new tactics involved. She instinctively touched the outside of her pocket, making sure the sample bag that contained the fractured bones was still there. Why rob graves? Especially at the Great Wall of China. Why go through all that trouble?

She waited for the surveillance camera to turn away from her position before she made her move. Right before the camera made its second pass, she ducked into an office. She had to time everything perfectly. The VP of the facility was on his lunch, but that only gave her twenty minutes to get in, grab what she needed, and make a speedy exit. Silently, she closed the door behind her, and turned on the lights. It was a fairly simple office, with a few plants in the corners, a bookshelf, a large desk and computer, and a couch. She pulled out an external hardrive from her back pocket and injected it into the computer. Luckily for her, the IT savvy personnel in the anit-Umbrella groups in Europe constructed a small mechanism for Chris' team that would override any security access problems they might run into. She inserted the tiny contraption into another USB port, and the device took care of the rest. "Now, let's see what you've been hiding here, ActiveCare," Rebecca said to herself.

ActiveCare was a brand new medical facility that had been stationed in Beijing six months ago. At first, she didn't pay the facility any heed, but there was something that struck her as odd. It was the only hospital that took a prime interest in the recent attacks and murders, targeting the families of the recently deceased. They were offering free psychological treatment and even helping families to cover the costs for burials.

Rebecca searched around the main folders on the desktop, trying to find anything that was related to the victims of the "animal attacks" or the corpses that were "taken from their graves". She clicked on every icon that deemed interesting. "There has to be something," she said through gritted teeth. Then, something caught her eye.

_Code: VITA-DNA Matches_

"Interesting…" Rebecca double-clicked the file and it branched out into at least fifty other folders. "Unmatched- Chang, unmatched- Lau… unmatched-Tse," Rebecca frowned. They all had the same title, save for what appeared to be last names. She decided to click on the one that her mouse just happened to land on. "Unmatched-Chen… what's your story?"

A picture of a middle aged woman appeared in the top left corner of the computer, followed by a detailed profile, titled Madison Chen. "Five-three, one hundred and fifteen pounds, blood type O…" Rebecca skimmed through the profile, searching for something, anything that seemed out of the ordinary. She searched through the comments box. "Subject is not related to the ancestors of the VITA genetic strand," her eyes narrowed on the last three words. "What the heck is the VITA genetic strand?"

She couldn't afford to waste any time. Rebecca copied all the files she could find and waited eagerly for the transfer to finish. The more she dug into the profiles of the victims, the more she was beginning to realize that there was a growing pattern in these attacks. It seemed that Miss Chen was the most recent victim. Rebecca pulled out her cell and dialed Claire's number. "Hey, it's me," she said, once she heard Claire answer. "Pack up your bags. We're taking a trip to Dacinta."


	4. Contact

Jill held onto her seat tighter as Chris sped down the bumpy dirt road heading toward the Black Mountain Airport, or rather what was left of it. The entire area was now closed off, but yellow tape hardly ever stopped her and Chris from ever trespassing. The Nevada heat was bearing down on them relentlessly. "Would be nice if we could take a trip to Florida or something," she said, wiping the sweat from her forehead.

"Not gonna complain there," Chris said with a smirk. "I haven't seen you in a bikini in years."

Jill slapped him in the back of the head, but she couldn't help but smile as well. "That's no way to talk about your partner," she said. She regretted saying the last bit as she saw Chris' smile vanish.

"Yeah… partner," was all he said. It was amazing how the atmosphere suddenly changed. Jill sighed, leaning back into her seat.

It was a dance they had been going through for years, ever since they were both on S.T.A.R.S. At first it was shameless flirting, at least on Chris' part. When Jill was assigned to S.T.A.R.S, Chris took an immediate interest in "lockpicking lessons" even though it would be a rare opportunity indeed if he was ever in a situation where it would be needed. She could never understand why Chris had such a hard time getting along with the higher ups, but as time went by she realized that he was an indeed valuable member of the team, and she truly did learn much from him. He and Jill had been assigned to Alpha team, and since then, they were inseparable.

"What do you think we'll find here?" she asked, quickly switching subjects.

Chris turned right and headed down another dirt road. The wreckage from the explosion that occurred weeks ago was now in sight. The airport hangar had been classified as a "horrible prank gone wrong" to the media. Just like the Mansion Incident, the event was buried as more top stories circled the media. "Clues. But I'm concerned that no one found a body," he said.

"Even if he is still alive, do you think he'll go back after Claire?" This was a topic that was never mentioned near Chris' little sister. When Claire had regained her ability to feel, she had been unable to suppress her tears for a week. She had gone through several cathartic stages before he became stable enough to continue on her mission with Leon.

She saw Chris' hands tighten on the steering wheel, and could only guess what he was immediately thinking. She placed her hand on his shoulder. "We'll be ready. We always are," she said in confidence. "No matter what happens, we always take care of our own. She's like a sister to me now, too you know? I'm not going to give her up easily."

Chris' hold relaxed on the wheel, and he turned his head and smiled at her. She couldn't admit it publicly, but it was that smile that made her fight for a better future. "I'm glad I have you by my side," he said.

Jill grinned, and slid her hand up to his cheek. There was no amount of words that could express how much she was grateful to have him in her life. Hopefully, she could tell him more than a few words in the future. A future free of viruses and companies like Umbrella. "Ditto," she said.

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Leon shifted the jeep into park, and quickly pulled a bulletproof vest over his head. "We have to go on foot from here on out," he said, checking the ammo in his Desert Eagle. He looked over to see how Claire was doing. She was checking the headset that kept the only line of communication open to Rebecca.

"Am I coming in clear, Becca? Copy," Claire said. She gave Leon a thumbs up indicating that the line was secure and clear. "We'll fill you in if we find anything. Meanwhile, see what you can get out of those samples you… borrowed." He saw Claire smile, but when she cut off communication with Rebecca, she frowned and looked out into the horizon.

"What's wrong?" Leon asked.

Claire stepped out of the jeep and readied her Beretta. "I never really told Chris or Jill…" she started. "I'm myself again, but there's still some of the perks of the virus that stayed with me."

Leon was less than happy to hear that, but at the same time he was more than grateful that it had ultimately saved her life. "Such as?"

"I smell death here," she said. "It's not like smelling a burger on the grill or anything. It's a stench that you can feel, if that makes any kind of sense."

The look she gave was all the justification he needed. Something had gone terribly wrong in Dacinta. "Anything else you can tell me?" he asked, preparing himself for the unexpected. Best case scenario, they would find a few dead animals, but worst case scenario…

"Human…" Claire said, narrowing her eyes. "And not just one body. The scent is light… probably carried on by this wind. Come on, Leon." She patted him on the shoulder, and began walking south.

They had been walking for fifteen minutes before they could see the outskirts of a ransacked village. It wasn't like the movies. There were no fires, no screams of horror, no sign of life… "Where are the people?" Leon asked, readying his weapon.

Claire suddenly stopped walking. She was scanning the area, and looked just as puzzled as he was. "Where are the bodies?" she asked, now taking precautionary steps toward the first house. "Where's the…"

"Blood," Leon finished. There was no doubt that there was a domestic disturbance, but it didn't look near as chaotic as an outbreak normally did. Some of the doors had been kicked in, and the livestock was let loose, but there was no other sign of a viral outbreak. "I don't understand."

He and Claire went through three more houses in the village, but they found nothing. "This doesn't make any sense," Claire said, shaking her head. "I don't see anything, but the smell here is overwhelming. It's actually starting to give me a headache…" She holstered her weapon and looked further into another home.

Leon was more than flustered. This was downright a waste of time. "It just doesn't end," he sighed, kicking at a large rock.

_Clack!_

"What the hell?" Leon kneeled down and picked up a small plastic casing the rock had been knocked into. He brushed off all the dust and dirt from the black container and opened it. Inside was a single data card. "Claire!" he called. "Take a look at this."

Claire was by his side in seconds. "A video card?" she said in surprise. "What would that be doing out here? Dacinta is one of the poorest villages in China. Technology would not have been a part of their daily lives… wonder what's on it." She pulled out her PDA from her butt pack and inserted the video card. "There are actually a few files on here," she said.

Leon stepped closer to get a better view. The first thing that hit his senses was the screams of terror. The view was shaky and erratic; the cameraman was obviously shaking in fear. "Cho!" cried a woman dressed in jeans and a simple t-shirt. "Cho! Behind you!" She pointed and screamed, dropping her microphone. The angle was jerked upward toward the sky, but he and Claire had a clear view on the cameraman's attacker. His throat was ripped open, and grotesque hands were plunged into his chest.

"Jesus…" Leon gasped. "These people didn't have a chance." He grimaced as he saw another cameraman completely mangled. "Hey, pause it right here."

He and Claire stared at the gruesome image. Something humanoid was glaring right back at them with its mouth wide open, giving them a clear view of the chewed up flesh between its teeth. "Notice anything?" Leon asked.

Claire tapped the upper right corner of the image. "Yeah… it's staring at me. The eyes… they aren't distant like the other zombies. They still look human. But…"

"Let's go through the rest of the video," he suggested. There was something completely off about the whole thing. And here he thought they had seen it all.

_"Cho!" screamed the woman. "Oh, my god! Someone please help him!" All she could do was back up and trip over another dead body as her cameraman came crawling toward her with only one arm intact. _

_"Madison," he croaked, holding onto his bleeding neck. "Madison, get out of here. Something isn't right with me. I'm burning… I don't want to hurt you." Slowly, Cho got to his feet, dropping his hands from the gaping hole that now exposed his throat. "No, please," he begged. "No… I don't want to…"_

_Madison shook madly in fear. All she could do was hold up her hands in a weak defense as Cho came after her. "Please, stop!" she cried. But Cho grabbed her hands and bit her wrists. _

_"I can't stop!" Cho yelled between bites. "It won't let me! Forgive me!" _

Leon and Claire watched the onslaught in silence until a gloved hand could be seen picking up the camera. The angles became blurred and sporadic, then the screen turned black. Claire lowered the PDA and gave Leon an extremely concerned look. "He was conscious of everything he was doing. He wasn't a walking flesh craving monster. He didn't want to kill her. At least that much can be determined in a few minutes after infection."

"This is a new strand, it's gotta be," Leon said. "But something else is bugging me. If this is footage of the attacks that occurred in this exact spot, where's the evidence?"

He saw Claire shiver, and he couldn't blame her. "This video is dated back to just a few weeks ago. There's no way, a team could have cleared everything in the village. What about-"

Claire's suggestion was cut short as loud roar echoed through the village. It caused both her and Leon to crouch into a defensive stance, weapons drawn. "What the hell was that?" Claire whispered.

Her answer didn't wait at all. A large muddy black tentacle emerged from a nearby well, breaking through the stone structure with ease. It flexed and shot through the ground, tearing at the earth as another roar filled their ears. A wave of cracked strata came charging to them, and they both dove to the side and rolled to safety. "Something's underground, and it's trying to break through!" Leon yelled. "Fall back!"

Seconds later, a dark slimy mass emerged from the well, completely destroying layers of rock and stone. A dark bloody trail was left behind as it slid toward the only two living beings within hundreds of miles.


	5. Connection

Claire slowly opened her eyes. Sharp pain shot through her body when she attempted to push herself up. She fell onto her back again, and let out a deep breath. Her vision was blurred, and she could feel sweat dripping down her face. She instinctively wiped her cheek with the back of her hand, and she saw red. She remembered running from the well, and before she could look back to assess the situation, she was thrown into the air. How long was she out?

"Claire!" hissed a voice. "Get up. You must get up." The voice was steady and strong. It was a strange feeling, but with each word that was said, she could feel her strength returning. "Now, Claire. Get to your feet!"

There was no way she would be killed now. She ignored the stinging sensation in her neck and back, and got to her feet. She stumbled over as another tremor shook the earth. "Leon!" she called out. A slimy wave of black ooze came toward her, and she emptied a clip into the sticky mass, but as she suspected it did nothing to damage it. She dove out of the way as a section of the mass solidified into a solid spear and shot forward, aiming for her legs. The tip of the black spear pierced the ground, and was immobile. Claire spun and kicked at the spear, effectively snapping the it into two pieces.

She heard a shriek emit from the monster, but if it was from pain or annoyance, she couldn't tell. "Leon!" she cried once more. Everywhere she looked, all she could see were splotches of the black ooze. This didn't make sense. Who was talking to her earlier?

"Claire!"

"Oh, thank God…" Claire gasped. "Leon!" He had to have been at least hundred maybe a hundred and fifty feet from her. Strange… the voice she heard seemed much close to her, as though he was whispering in her ear. Clearly, the person who encouraged her to get to her feet was not her partner; it couldn't have been. Leon ran to her, avoiding the black mass.

"Come on!" he said, grabbing her hand. "We've got to go!" He pulled her to her feet, and they both ran as fast as they could, dodging the attacks of the black monster. Her senses were going crazy; there was something about this monster that made her sick to her stomach other than that she was running for her life. She recognized this smell. There was a familiarity with the scent that surrounded them that had haunted her for months.

"Jesus, Leon…" she breathed. "This thing," she looked back, seeing that they were now a safe distance from the village. With each incident came a new surprise. How was this possible? "Leon, the people."

"What? What is it?" he asked, putting his hand on her shoulder. They were both breathing heavily, and it took a moment to bring herself to voice the realization.

"That thing is made up of dead flesh," she said with a grimace. "I can smell it, smell them. Somehow all those bodies, and all the blood that covered the village solidified into that… that thing!" She pointed her gun toward the village and spat in disgust.

She wasn't surprised when she saw the skeptical look on Leon's face. "How are you so sure?" he asked. She could tell a part of him wanted to believe her, but even she had to admit the explanation sounded ridiculous at best. This was completely different than the standard "run into a bunch of infected citizens" scenario.

"Look, I can't explain it," she said. "But when Wesker infected me, I could smell and hear everything. It was an unreal experience, and it's something I would never forget. You know how everyone carries their own natural scent?"

Leon nodded, his expression now becoming more serious. "How many can you smell from that thing?"

Claire closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. "Fifty... maybe sixty bodies. And I can smell livestock." A year ago, she would fully believe that it was impossible to smell death, but Wesker had proven her wrong. Her stomach lurched, and she turned and vomited. All those people were wiped out in probably a matter of minutes, and no one knew. The village may have been small, but the people did all they could to survive.

Leon placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry, Claire," he said when she was able to stand upright once more.

She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, and radioed Rebecca. To hell with this thing, and to hell with the virus. It had destroyed countless lives without a second thought. Well, she was prepared to return the favor. "Rebecca, come in."

_Chambers here! What's up Claire?_

"Rebecca, we're going to need some firepower. Can you get in touch with our contacts in Beijing and see if they can let us borrow a chopper?"

_Sure thing. What kind of weaponry do you need? _

Claire heard another roar from the black mass. It seemed to patrol the outskirts of the village, giving up any interest in her and Leon. She had to make sure that every inch of the monster would be destroyed. If Rebecca was able to find a sample of it, then the clean up job was a failure. "Gasoline. And lots of it."

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Rebecca smiled, thankful that she was working with such a friendly team. "Thank you, Captain Yee. Sending coordinates now." She punched in some numbers on the keyboard and clicked send. Hopefully, Captain Yee and his team will reach Claire and Leon in time. Things sounded pretty rough for a moment. However, there was no use in worrying right now. She heard Claire's voice, and she sounded unharmed. That was more than she could have hoped for.

She stood and left the communication room. Billy was waiting for her, and he didn't look very happy. She recognized that frown, and it meant something had happened. "What's wrong?" she asked.

"There's something you should see…" he said, gesturing for her to follow him into the next room. "I know you told me not to touch anything but your samples changed while you were away talking to Claire."

Her heart began racing. Did something happen to the samples? She entered the room that had been specifically built as a small laboratory for her. At first glance, everything seemed in place. She scanned the tables and noticed a glass bowl had been placed upside down over the panels that kept the bone samples intact. "What happened?" she asked, moving closer to the bowl. "I don't see any difference, Billy." Rebecca attempted to lift the bowl, but Billy stopped her.

"Look closely," he said, keeping his hand firmly on the top of the bowl. "I don't know how it was done, but the blood samples you were using caused some kind of reaction with these things."

"What?" A dozen horrific scenarios flew through her thoughts, and all of them ended the same. Her team was killed because of something she overlooked, something she should have caught. Chris and the others may have had more firsthand experience in dealing with the infected, but she alone truly understood what the virus was capable of. It was her worst fear that she made a mistake and her loved ones would perish because of it. She shook her head, forcing herself back into the present.

She looked closely at the bone fragment that lay motionless on the center of the panel. The fragment suddenly jumped, hitting the surface of the bowl. "Oh!-" Rebecca yelped, stepping back. Billy held her in place, steadying her. Once she realized that the fragment could not pierce through the glass, she step forward again with more confidence. "Fascinating," she said. The fragment continued to attack her again, but it was stopped by its glass prison.

"See what I mean?" Billy asked. "There's not much power to it, but the thing just came to life when you were gone. I didn't touch it, but it took a while to get it under here."

Rebecca was stumped. It was scientifically impossible to bring an inanimate object to life, well at least, something that did not contained a brain or a desire to feed. "Wait a second. This is the only one that came to life right?"

Billy nodded. "So far."

She slapped her hand against her forehead. The explanation was not completely illogical, but it was more of a scary concept than anything else. She could tell that Billy was staring at her, waiting for her to explain what she had just figured out. "I was working with some blood samples. That was the fragment that I tested first with the DNA samples I had collected over the years. I wanted to see if there was some connection in any of the strands, but Claire called in. I left this fragment next to the first blood sample. A drop or two may have even gotten on it."

Rebecca leaned down and looked as closely as she could to the fragment. To her dismay, she saw that the tip of the fragment was now dark red.

Billy's eyes narrowed. She could see the muscle's of his arm flex in tension. "So what you're saying is the blood caused this thing to reanimate?"

She bit her lip, cursing herself for being so foolish. She should have known what she was dealing with, but she left her guard down. "That's the only explanation I have. But I truly believed all the samples I brought down here were not infected with any strand of the virus. I thought it would be safe enough to openly conduct tests on both samples. Even then, the only way to be infected by the virus was through physical damage. Someone could be scratched, bitten or have the virus injected into their bloodstream. But with just contact alone…" She walked over to the station she had set up for the initial experimentation. She read the label of the blood sample that was closest to the fragment at the time.

_Sample #9- Female: Redfield, C._

"Oh my God," she breathed.


	6. Reconnect

AN: Hey guys, it's been way too long. But I'm back, and I'm hoping to get this finished. Thanks for all the messages and encouragement.

Kris

Chris wiped the sweat from his face with the back of his hand. He and Jill had gone through at least a half mile of wreckage, but he wasn't satisfied. They still did not find Wesker's body. He heard a sigh of disgust from Jill. "Did you find something?"

He turned to see Jill carefully kicking at a darkened slab of rotten meat. "Could be part of that tyrant we ran into. Or it could have been some poor animal that got caught in the blast." She dug into her backpack and pulled out metal tongs and a small containment box. "Still... better safe than sorry." She picked up the sample and secured it in the box before continuing on the search. "I don't know Chris..." she said in disappointment. "I know that he isn't human, but really, could ANY part of his body survive that? Do you truly believe he's out there somewhere?"

"I made the mistake of believing he was gone before," Chris said. "I'm not going to do it again. Unless I see his body, I'm going to believe he's still out there. And if I see him near Claire again, I'll..." His whole body tightened and his stomach twisted in a painful knot. There were a couple of close calls over the years, but losing Claire to Wesker made him feel like a failure. He was powerless to help her when she needed him the most, and it sickened him. His hands balled into fists and he closed his eyes tightly.

He felt Jill's arms wrap around his torso, and she gently pulled him against her. "We're in this together. Don't forget that," she said quietly. Chris placed his hands over hers and allowed himself a moment to just relax and cherish the woman next to him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Rebecca was hunched over on the table she used to display all the samples she accumulated in the past two weeks. She leaned on her elbows, cupping her hands over her mouth out of habit. All she could do was stare at the living sample that continued to tap against the glass bowl. It was bone. No flesh, no brain, no drive. It was no different than a rock. But here it was, animated, alive and attempting to escape its prison. She switched her attention to her laptop and scrolled through more files that she had stolen from ActiveCare. What the hell was the VITA strand?

She knew that in Latin, vita meant life or to live. Was ActiveCare looking for a perfected strand of the virus? It had to be. However, they weren't testing this new virus on live subjects anymore. That had to be the reason for the grave robberies. This new information was both good and bad.

Billy was beside her, and he affectionately rubbed the lower half of her neck. "What are you thinking?"

"This whole thing is horrifying," she sighed. "Okay, let's think about this logically. We're here because people have been dying and for some reason bodies have been taken from their graves."

"Yes."

"I took some files from the new medical facility in Beijing called ActiveCare, and it seems that they are trying to find DNA matches to a new strand of the virus. Make sense so far?"

Billy kept quiet, and she was grateful. There were times when she would go on random tangents and rants and she didn't want to be interrupted. " Now, so far, every single file I found has been labeled no match. There were a couple of encrypted files that I couldn't break through, so I sent them to our hacker friends. I should be getting the results shortly. Now there's this business," she pointed to the glass bowl. "Claire's DNA brought this thing to life. And with only a single drop of blood, I might add."

She turned to face Billy and his frown deepened. She bet he could see the worry on her face. "This means that Claire's body isn't completely void of the virus. Billy, if ActiveCare or Umbrella gets a hold of her, we're all in a lot of danger. Her DNA is exactly what Umbrella tried to perfect and more. They don't even need live subjects to create a living weapon anymore..."

"Jesus..." Billy said. "Can you find a cure for her? Or create one?"

"I don't know I_-"_

_Ring ring! Ring ring_!

Rebecca pulled out her cellphone from her back pocket and answered the call. "Yes, this is Chambers... oh hello Dr. Shapiro..."

XXXXXX

Claire smiled as she saw children running past her, laughing and playing, completely within their own innocent world. That's the way life should be. She continued to roam the streets of Beijing, trying to clear her mind and take in some fresh air. Leon had stayed behind in their hotel room even though he had expressed that he wanted to accompany her. She declined his offer with a small kiss saying that she just wanted to be alone.

Vendors littered the busy streets and she had to step aside to let large crowds pass her by. People were shouting out the names of everything they sold from vegetables to chickens to jewelry. She embraced the rich culture around her and took a deep breath. The last few hours had been taxing, so she desperately needed a breather. She felt something tug at her shirt. She looked down in surprise. It was a little boy. He couldn't have been more than five years old. "Have something for you," he said in a thick heavy accent.

"Oh?"

XXXXXX

"Thank you very much for your help, Dr-" Rebecca started, but she was cut off.

"Ms. Chambers, the files you sent us were highly classified and rightfully so," Dr. Shapiro said hastily. His voice was stern and serious causing another wave of worry to course though Rebecca's body.

"What is it? What did you find?"

XXXXXX

The little boy reached out his hand and waited for her to accept whatever was nudged against his palm. Reluctantly, Claire opened her hand and let the boy drop something into her grasp. It was small and hard, like a rock. When she observed the tiny item closely, she gasped. Candy corn. Her head snapped up and she began looking around wildly. Amidst, the dark haired residents of Beijing China, she saw him.

XXXXXXX

"There were two files in particular that you would find most pressing, Ms. Chambers. Both files indicate that the both people are perfect VITA-DNA matches, and neither are deceased. The first describes a female subject."

"I am assuming it is Claire Redfield," Rebecca said, hoping it wouldn't confirm her worst fear.

"Correct. The second however, pertains to a male subject. Roughly forty years of age. Highly skilled, trained with a military background. Years ago, he resided in Raccoon City."

"You're kidding..." Rebecca gasped. "That has to be Captain Albert-"

XXXXXXX

Claire's heart stopped when their eyes met. "Wesker."


End file.
